Protection. Feeling secure. Reflecting negativity. Today’s spell a day is about exactly this. Shielding ourselves from that which we do not want in our life. Negative forces that want to bring us down.

I have always been drawn to black onyx, which is traditionally a protection stone or a stone to ward off harm/negativity. When I was younger I had a piece of onyx that was shaped like a small obelisk that I wore for years. I would hang it on my bed post while I slept. It may sound crazy to some, but I could tell the days that I forgot it. The day always seemed full of mishaps and misunderstandings, frustrations and failures. I felt out of sorts without it during those early teenage years. I had bought it at this little shop in the mall of my hometown. One day it was gone and I couldn’t find it no matter how hard I searched. A few years later I was going through a difficult period in my life and I found it in an old box of random stuff. It seemed like the stone knew I needed a little boost and it returned to provide it. Sadly I have lost that stone again. Since I have had another necklace with a piece of onyx in it that I wore almost religiously for years. Due to the pentacle and crescent moon on the new pendant it became a symbol of my break with most other organized religions and started a lot of the comments regarding my status a s pagan or Wiccan by coworkers and friends. Initially I just felt it was neat and I wore it because of that.

Whether one believes in talismans or not, there seems to be a relationship between the importance one places on an object and your attitude about the world when you have it. Friends of mine who are devoutly Christian feel the same sense of loss and insecurity when they are without their cross as I used to without my onyx pendant.

Belief can be as powerful a tool as the supposed magical properties the tool is supposed to possess. What kind of symbol or talisman is important to you?